2/23/23
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – With its first two games under its belt, Lackawanna College baseball gets back on the road for a big doubleheader, moved up because of potential bad weather.
 
The Falcons will hit the road on Thursday, February 23^rd, for Bel Air, MD, to take on the NJCAA Division I Harford CC Fighting Owls for a doubleheader, with the first game starting at 3:00pm ET at the Harford Varsity Baseball Field.
 
There will be a video livestream available via the Harford CC Fighting Owl Vision, which can be accessed HERE.
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (2-0) enters the doubleheader after sweeping past Southwest Virginia CC in a pair of games over the past weekend to open the 2023 campaign. In two games, the Falcons collectively hit .391 and had a .500 on-base percentage, piling up 27 hits and 22 runs across two games. Lackawanna scored double-digit runs in both games, drew 16 walks, and slugged at .565, while going 13-for-13 on stolen base attempts. Defensively, the Falcons were equally as impressive, holding the Soaring Eagles to a .148 batting average over 16 innings, striking out 25 batters while walking just five, while only giving up two extra base hits, a pair of doubles, which game in game two. The pitching staff has a 1.69 collective ERA, and a .81 WHIP.
 
Cole Casamento (Limerick, PA) leads the Falcons with a .600 batting average on the year. Casamento holds a 1.267 OPS, fourth on the team among batters with three or more at-bats. Casamento, a catcher for the Falcons, is 3-for-5 on the year, with three hits and three RBIs on the year. Casamento has a .667 on-base percentage. In game two against SWVCC, he was 3-for-4 with a run scored and three RBI.
 
Zachary Walsh (Spring Brook Twp, PA) is second on the team with a .571 batting average. Walsh leads the Falcons with a 1.870 OPS, and is 4-for-7 with seven runs scored, two RBIs, and two extra base hits, including a double and a homerun. Walsh has drawn four walks, and stolen six total bases this year. He had five steals in the first game against SWVCC, drawing three walks and scoring four runs in the shutout win. In game two, Walsh was 3-for-5 with his double and a solo homer, driving in a pair of runs for Lacakwanna.
 
Dennis Pierce (Quakertown, PA) is third on the team, hitting an even .500 through two games this year. Pierce is 4-for-8, driving in a team-high five RBIs on the year. Pierce holds a 1.125 OPS, and is slugging at .625. He was 2-for-5 with a double and three RBI in the first game, then went 2-for-3 with two RBIs in game two.
 
Christian Rush (Perkasie, PA) has the most at-bats (11) and total bases (10) for the Falcons this season, hitting .455 on the year. Rush has a 1.364 OPS, third on the team, and is slugging at .909, second on the squad. Rush has a triple and a homerun on the year, with three RBIs this season. He leads the team with five hits, and is second on the squad with four runs this year. Rush was 3-for-5 with three runs, a triple, and two RBIs in game one. He was 2-for-6 with a run scored and an RBI on his solo homer in game two.
 
On the mound, the Falcons are led by Kyle Scott (Westminster, MD), who is 1-0 on the year in his first start. He went five innings against SWVCC, striking out ten batters and allowing just two hits in what became a shutout 12-0 win for the Falcons. Scott was the Region XIX Pitcher of the Year in 2021, and battled through injuries last season to still be named to the Region XIX second-team.
 
Owen Arndt (Lewisburg, PA) got the start in game two, going two innings and allowing two hits and a run, while striking out a batter. Arndt is a transfer from Wallace State College in Alabama, where last season he pitched 21 innings, giving up ten earned runs and striking out 21 batters, going 1-1 with a 4.29 ERA.
 
Aiden Starn (Pennsville, NJ) came on in relief and got the win in game two, pitching three innings and, after a nervy first inning, settling in nicely. Starn allowed four runs, two earned, in three innings of work, but managed to strike out five batters and dance around four walks. Starn was the workhorse for the Falcons staff a year ago, pitching a team-high 44 innings and making nine starts, also first on the squad. Starn was 2-2 with a 6.14 ERA, striking out 34 batters and walking 13, while allowing 53 hits and 37 runs.
 
Ty Morris (Manchester Valley, MD) was stellar in his relief appearance this year, throwing three innings of no-hit relief in game two on Sunday against SWVCC, striking out five of the nine batters he faced. Morris struck out 23 batters in 19 innings last year, giving up 14 runs on 19 hits, going 2-3 with a 5.21 ERA.
 
Behind the pitchers, the players with the most put-outs this year are catchers Eric Ludwick (Bethlehem, PA) and Casamento, with 15 put-outs apiece on the season. Middle infielder Ian Murphy (West Deptford, NJ) has eight put-outs this year to lead the non-catchers, with Spencer Butz (York, PA) has a pair of put-outs and an assist on the year.
 
The Falcons are coached by Mike McCarry, entering his fifth season at the helm for the Falcons. McCarry has taken the Falcons to the NJCAA DII World Series twice in the last four years, taking the Falcons to Region 19 crowns in 2019 and 2021, on their way to the World Series tournament in Enid, OK. McCarry, who played under Jamie Shevchik at nearby Keystone College in the early 2000's, has been coaching baseball since 2006, having spent time at Central Bucks West HS, then moved onto the collegiate ranks a few years later when he arrived at LaSalle University, where he was the Head Assistant – Pitching Coach and Recruiting Coordinator. While at LaSalle, McCarry helped the Explorers develop a relationship with NJCAA schools, bringing in four NJCAA All-Americans in his time. After LaSalle, McCarry moved on to be the pitching coach at Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches, TX. McCarry is 96-57 in his 4+ seasons with the Falcons, winning a pair of Region 19 championships and coaching three NJCAA All-Americans, as well as several All-Region selections in his time at Lackawanna.
 
About The Opponents
Harford CC (1-4)  enters the contest on the wrong side of a three-game skid, after dropping a pair of games on Sunday and one this past Tuesday afternoon. In their latest game, the Fighting Owls fell 14-9 to the USC Sumter Fire Ants in Sumter, SC. Harford held a 5-2 lead going into the bottom of the fourth, but the Fire Ants scored five runs, four coming on a grand slam, to turn the game around. The Owls got one back in the top of the fifth to close the gap to one, but USC Sumter put up a seven-spot in the bottom of the eighth, blowing things open and securing the win. Harford outhit the Fire Ants (11-7), but committed five errors and didn't get more than two innings from any of its pitchers on the day. Trey Cruz was 2-for-5 with a run scored, and Robert Buckley went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Reuben Livingston had a two-run homer in the first inning, and Jack McCarter hit a three-run homer in the top of the ninth to give the Owls a thread of hope before the game ended.
 
The Fighting Owls are hitting .264 on the year, with an .860 OPS through their first five games. Harford has scored 29 runs in five games, averaging 5.8 runs per contest this year. The Owls have 16 extra base hits this year, including eight doubles and six homeruns, with a collective slugging percentage at .466. Harford has struck out 30 times as a team this year, and are just 5-for-8 on stolen base attempts this season.
 
On the mound, the Owls have an 8.21 team ERA, giving up 36 hits and 37 runs, 31 earned, in 34 innings of work. Opponents are hitting .468 against the Owls this year, drawing 23 walks to 32 strikeouts. The Owls have nine wild pitches and have hit eight batters on the year.
 
Cam Trego leads the team with a .385 batting average this season. Trego is 5-for-13 on the year, with a double and an RBI and three runs scored this season. He's appeared in all five games for the Owls, starting three of them, and has a .429 on-base percentage this year. He was 2-for-3 in the loss to Southeastern CC this past Sunday. Cam was 1-for-4 with two runs scored in the loss to Sumter on Tuesday.
 
Trey Cruz is second on the team, hitting .357 with a .900 OPS on the year. Cruz has drawn three walks and put up five hits on 14 at-bats, posting a .471 on-base percentage this season. Cruz has two games with two or more hits through his four appearances, going 2-for-2 in the season-opener against Florence Darlington, where he had two runs scored and a double, and then going 2-for-5 in his last game against USC Sumter.
 
Quinn Madden leads the Owls with a team-best seven hits in his team-high 20 at-bats, a .350 batting average. Madden has a team-high three doubles this year, and is slugging at .500. Madden is 3-for-4 on stolen base attempts, leading the Owls in steals. Madden has two games with multiple hits this season, going 2-for-3 with a double in the opener against Flo-Dart, and then doing the exact same thing against Flo-Dart the next day. Madden was just 1-for-6 with a run scored in the loss to USC Sumter on Tuesday.
 
Rueben Livingston has a 1.238 OPS, second on the team amongst players with three or more appearances, and is hitting .333 on the year. Livingston has scored four runs this year, and has driven in a pair, coming on a homerun against Sumter. Livingston is one of six different Owls with a homerun this season. He also leads Harford in the dubious category of hit-by-pitches, reaching base three times this year after getting plunked. Livingston had two runs scored and his two RBIs on a homerun against Sumter on Tuesday.
 
Robert Buckley is hitting .313 through five games this year, and is second on the team with four RBIs this season. Buckley has a homerun and a pair of doubles, tying him for the team-lead with Madden for extra base hits. Buckley is slugging at .625 this season, and has drawn four walks through his five games. He's got two games with two hits, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a double in a win against Southeastern CC back on February 18^th, and then recently going 2-for-4 with a run scored, two RBI, and a double in the loss to Sumter on Tuesday.
 
Jake McCarter has played in three games, going 3-for-5 and racking up a 1.914 OPS, best on the team. McCarter has two runs scored and three RBI, coming on a three run homerun in the top of the ninth against USC Sumter on Tuesday. He's drawn a pair of walks, boosting his on-base percentage to .700. McCarter didn't get the start against Sumter, but pinch hit in the ninth and smashed that three-run homer to help inch the Owls closer.
 
On the mound, Harford is led by Jake Potts, who pitched a complete game seven innings in a loss to Southeastern CC on February 19^th. Potts allowed five hits and three runs, two earned, while striking out eight and walking two in a 3-2 loss to Southeastern CC. It was a game that was tied 2-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh, and the Rams from SCC managed to push the winning run across. Potts has a 2.79 ERA.
 
Doug Marose got the opening day start against Flo-Dart, pitching 4.2 innings against the Stingers, giving up five runs on nine hits, three earned, while striking out four in the loss. He's got a 5.79 ERA, and has given up three doubles and a homerun on the year.
 
Austin Biddle was the starter, but didn't get the win, in Harford's lone win this year, a 12-10 win over Southeastern CC. Biddle went 4.1 innings, giving up five runs on six hits, all earned, with seven strikeouts. Southeastern held a 10-2 lead at one point, but Harford scored eight runs in the final three innings to complete the comeback.
 
Paul Glenchur was the one who got the win. Glenchur went 2.1 innings in relief, giving up just one hit and striking out a batter to help keep the Owls within striking distance to pull off the comeback and win.
 
The head coach for the Owls is Joshua Houser, now in his third season as the head coach. Houser was named as the interim head coach back in 2020, and led the Owls to a 9-4 record before the pandemic shut down the season. Houser, a Harford alum, was hired as an assistant in 2019, where he helped the Fighting Owls to a 46-9 record, winning their fourth straight Region XX championship and a fourth conference title in five years, while rattling off 32 straight wins at one point. Under his guidance, the Fighting Owls had an impressive 2022, where they went 48-9, winning a Region XX championship, the MD Juco title, and the Eastern District title, clinching a spot in the NJCAA Division I World Series, their first appearance in the tournament since Houser was a player in 2016. Houser played two years at Harford, helping the Fighting Owls to two conference titles, plus a Region XX and Eastern District Championship in 2016, which gave Harford their only other World Series appearance. Houser went on to play two more seasons for the Kutztown University Bears. Houser is 85-28-1 in his time at Harford.
 
Game Details
The doubleheader between Lackawanna and Harford CC is set for Thursday, February 23^rd, in Bel Air, MD, with the first game starting at 3:00pm ET at the Harford Varsity Baseball Field.
 
There will be a video livestream available via the Harford CC Fighting Owl Vision, which can be accessed HERE. There will also be Livestats available to follow along with HERE.
 
The next game for Lackawanna College is a scheduled single nine-inning game on the road at Region XIX DIII opponent RCSJ Cumberland on Tuesday, February 28^th. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30pm ET in Vineland, NJ.